Former Bulldogs Moved on Deadline Day

The last week has been newsworthy for former UMD Bulldogs playing pro hockey.

On Feb. 21, Matt Niskanen was dealt from the Dallas Stars to the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Penguins have given Niskanen plenty of ice time so far, though he'll have to play well to keep it, given the number of guys they have banged up.

The bulk of the activity came on Monday.

Former UMD sniper MacGregor Sharp was dealt from the Anaheim Ducks to the Vancouver Canucks. Sharp has 33 points in 96 career AHL games, and was scoreless in eight appearances last season with the Ducks.

He will report to the Manitoba Moose of the AHL.

Evan Oberg -- who played two years at UMD from 2007-2009 before turning pro -- was dealt by Vancouver to the Florida organization. Oberg has four NHL games under his belt, including two this season, but he will report to the Rochester Americans of the AHL. He has seven goals and 11 points in 38 AHL games this season.

Oberg is the second former UMD defenseman to make his home in the Florida Panthers organization. Jason Garrison is in his third professional season, and his first full NHL season. In 53 games, Garrison has three goals and 11 points, but his role is likely to increase, now that Florida has traded half their defensemen. Included in their fire sale were captain Bryan McCabe and power play quarterback Dennis Wideman. Garrison should get some power play time to go along with the more than 23 minutes per game he's already on the ice for.

Meanwhile, the San Jose Sharks have signed goalie Antti Niemi to a four-year contract extension. This is likely bad news for former UMD All-American goalie Alex Stalock, who is recovering from a serious injury to his left leg that required surgery. Stalock was having a good second season in the AHL -- and had picked up his first NHL win in a brief call-up -- before he was injured.

Now, one has to wonder what Al's future in the organization is, because $3.8 million per year goalies usually don't sit on the bench for very long.

As for other former UMD players currently in the NHL, Mason Raymond has ten goals and 31 points in 52 games for the Vancouver Canucks. Tim Stapleton has one goal and two points in 26 games for the Atlanta Thrashers. Also, Jay Rosehill -- who would have set all sorts of records for sin-bin time had he played four years of college hockey -- has one goal and two points in 18 games for the Toronto Maple Leafs. A defenseman for most of his career, Rosehill plays forward now, and brings the kind of truculence Brian Burke likes.

Wild Justifiably Stands Pat at Deadline

When the NHL's annual trade deadline passed Monday afternoon, it wasn't terribly shocking that the Minnesota Wild did not make any changes to their NHL roster.

(The team did make one trade, sending minor-league goalie Anton Khudobin -- a guy they were going to lose in free agency this summer, anyway -- to Boston for two prospects.)

Fantasies around the Wild Kingdom had Minnesota making deals for guys like Ales Hemsky or Dustin Penner from Edmonton, or maybe even a steady veteran center ala Marty Reasoner.

Of course, fantasies don't often become reality in any walk of life, and hockey is no different. Logic dictated that Minnesota not make the bank-breaking, prospect-robbing kind of deal Los Angeles made for Penner.

Could Minnesota have gotten a draft pick or a fourth-liner for Chuck Kobasew? Sure, but what good would that have done?

Take it away, Russo.

I talk to execs in the league all year long, but especially recently. I started to really comprehend what the asking price was going to be for the most marginal of players. The bar was set with Mike Fisher for a first, but when you have so many teams fighting for a race, that leads to few sellers, which leads to inflated prices.

So I knew what the price would be and I knew what the Wild was 1) going to be willing to pay; 2) could even pay.

The Wild was not trading first- or second-round draft picks or prospects like Mikael Granlund, Johan Larsson, Jason Zucker and Brett Bulmer for third-line centers like Marty Reasoner and fourth-line centers like Zenon Konopka or even rental top-6 wingers or guys like Brad Boyes, who has another year left on his deal at $4.5 million.

Some organizations are in a position to do that. The Wild is absolutely not.

I love how people paint Russo as an apologist for management. Three months ago, the other half of the fanbase wanted to skewer the NHL's best beat writer for being too damn negative.

Anyway, the Wild did the right thing Monday.

For Chuck Fletcher, he had a few choices on the table.

(Keep in mind that they didn't have the ability to spend an unlimited amount, because they're kind of tight against the salary cap, and they wanted to retain some flexibility for next year.)

The first option was to make a deal for a marginal center like Reasoner or the Islanders' Zenon Konopka. Russo notes -- and he'd know -- that the price was in the area of a second-round pick. That's what the Sabres gave up for a slumping Brad Boyes, a guy who went from 76 goals over a two-year span between 2007-2009 to 26 in the almost two full seasons since. Boyes is scheduled to make $4.5 million next season, so there's reason for Buffalo to pay a price, hoping he can make an impact after a change of scenery.

Giving up a second-round pick for a low-scoring, high-character center who is in his walk year isn't just borderline stupid. It's stupid. No reason for Fletcher to go there at that price.

Another option would have been to sell the farm (system) for Penner. The Kings gave up a highly-regarded defensive prospect and two draft picks, including their 2011 first-rounder. Minnesota isn't as rich with prospects as Los Angeles, so that would have been a steep price for Fletcher to pay, and it would have required him to pay Penner for another season at over $4 million.

Fletcher took the third option, which kept his team together without disruption. It also prevented him from adding any pieces, but that's okay.

As presently constructed, this team can make the playoffs. They're in a dogfight, as evidenced by their four-place fall (fifth to ninth) that was caused by going 1-2 over three games. It won't be easy for them, and it's hardly a slam-dunk they will make the tournament.

But if the closeness of the Western Conference tells you anything, it should tell you that the eight teams that make the playoffs will all have a shot. As long as you get in the tournament, it could be you with Lord Stanley come June.

The Wild might not be good enough to win the Cup, but Dustin Penner wasn't going to put them over the top. Neither was Marty Reasoner. Good players, yes, but not game-breakers come postseason time.

If they can get Guillaume Latendresse back, it could function like a deadline deal, given how long he's been out. Mikko Koivu is getting closer now, too.

Fans -- like me -- want to see the Wild make the playoffs. I don't have any doubt, though, that a trade wouldn't have really put them over the top, and it would have hampered their progress toward building a championship-caliber organization.

And if they deal big for Penner, but fail to win a Cup, then watch someone they give up become a star in Edmonton, there'd be hell to pay in Minnesota.

Face it, Brewers Fans: Boras is Right About Prince Fielder

The baseball All-Star break has started. You know what that means.

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Baseball's All-Star Game isn't what it used to be. There is way too much showmanship before the start of the game, and it often runs past midnight in the Eastern time zone. I'm not one to use the tired "Kids can't watch the game!" line on the All-Star Game because I don't think there's any way to make kids care about such a spectacle.

The game itself is rarely newsworthy, unless something bad -- a tie, for example -- were to happen.

Instead, the news is often made off the field, as we usually get a lot of trade deadline banter, to go along with agents talking about how great their clients are.

One agent notorious for the latter is Scott Boras. The superagent is a master of manipulating teams in negotiations, and maximizing the return for his clients. There's a reason the top young prospects and established veterans all seemingly flock to Boras for representation.

He's good. That's why.

Brewers first baseman Prince Fielder is a Boras client. He's not an All-Star, but Boras is in Anaheim for the game Tuesday, and he spoke to Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writer Tom Haudricourt Monday about the Brewers' efforts to re-sign Fielder.

Let's just say those efforts aren't going well.

Boras said he views Fielder as a “rare, rare commodity” for what the Brewers’ slugger accomplished by age 25. Fielder, who turned 26 in May, already has accumulated 181 home runs in 764 major-league games.

Every other player that has that by his age is a Hall of Famer,” said Boras, in attendance at the all-star interview sessions for players from both leagues.

The Brewers opened talks with Boras earlier this year on an extension for Fielder, who can be a free agent after the 2011 season. Word among agents attending the All-Star Game is that the Brewers made an initial offer of five years at just over $100 million.

Boras must have let the Brewers know that wouldn’t be nearly enough because talks broke off and nothing has happened for weeks. Boras declined to categorize the nature of those talks but made it clear that he considers Fielder a top-dollar player.

“We sat down and talked about exploratory elements of the process of free agency,” said Boras. “To suggest anyone is putting deadlines or timelines on it is wrong.

“With any slugger, three things are always certain. One is they are coveted. Two is they are either signed or subject to being traded. The third one is that regardless of where he’s at or will be, the rarity of their performance make them dramatically impactful to the system.

“Those number of players are less than 10 in baseball, from the offensive side, and Prince is one of them.”

Boras noted that Fielder is a more accomplished power hitter and younger than another of his clients, first baseman Mark Teixeira, who signed an eight-year, $180-million free-agent deal with the New York Yankees prior to the 2009 season.

“When you have a player that performs like Mark Teixeira, you have to look at Prince Fielder’s performance in comparison,” said Boras. “You want to know the value of a player? Take a look at it.

“Prince is a home-run hitter. He’s 70 home runs ahead of Teixeira at that point (of his career). Prince has much more power. This is how you (gauge) performance and age and production. You have to ask in the market place how many players can do this?”

This isn't a case involving a player who could be on the verge of a serious decline. People rag on Fielder for his weight, but the slugger continues to hit, he has plenty of power, he's still young, and there is no sign of his weight dragging him down. Despite the lines people try to feed you, he's not a butcher defensively, and he's not a cancer in the clubhouse.

Reality is that Fielder will deserve the payday he's going to get. He'll make sure he puts up the numbers to warrant it, and Boras will make damn sure he gets it.

That's what he does best.

And in this case, he should. Fielder is young enough that this might not be his only big payday, but you can't plan that way. The Brewers might be able to make a competitive offer, but it seems unlikely that they'll be able to keep Fielder if there is any interest in him on the open market.

Remember, it only takes one deep-pocketed team to break the bank on Fielder, and the Brewers are left with extra draft picks and a huge hole at first base.

What should they do?

Does general manager Doug Melvin just throw in the towel on this season, deal Fielder before July 31, and hope that the "under contract for next season" carrot is enough to inspire some serious offers?

Should he wait until the winter to deal him? There is a theory in baseball that position players get you more in return if you deal them during the offseason.

The other option is to wait until next summer. Of course, if the Brewers somehow become a contender, you can't go off trading your best player for -- at best -- sixty cents on the dollar. Then you're stuck getting nothing for him in free agency. That would go over like a lead balloon in Milwaukee.

The best option is probably to trade him this year, when you can sell teams on the idea of having him for the stretch run this year, and then the entire 2011 season. It's going to suck for the people of Milwaukee, and it might drive some fans to the newsstand to grab a football preview and read up on the Packers.

But it's best for the franchise. Look at other examples around sports. You can't just let prominent players walk as free agents with no compensation. If you do, it makes your franchise look worse than trading them ahead of time does.

Dammit: Cardinals Deal for Matt Holliday

The National League Central-leading St. Louis Cardinals just got a lot better. According to FanHouse, the Redbirds are on the verge of adding a serious power hitter to their lineup.

The deal for Oakland slugger Matt Holliday brings the star back to the National League (Colorado traded him to Oakland last winter), and it nets the A's three valuable prospects. From the Cardinals perspective, it allows them to bolster their lineup without trading any current major-league players.

It's a classic trade deadline rental. Holliday is a free agent at the end of the season, and there's no way of knowing if St. Louis will be able to afford him if a team like the Yankees or Mets were to come calling.

For a Cardinals team that is just hanging on to their NL Central lead, and struggling to score runs at times even with Albert Pujols hitting like no one in baseball is hitting, this is a great move.

Holliday is hardly a butcher defensively, and he should help protect Pujols in the lineup. This isn't a classic case of an American League hitter having to adjust to National League pitching, because Holliday spent his formative years in Colorado, hitting National League pitching very well.

The only thing he has to adjust to are the expectations in St. Louis. The Cardinals have been at or near the top of the division virtually all season, they have some bright pitchers on staff, and they have the best player in baseball at first base. Holliday has to make this team better, or the deal will be viewed as a disappointment.